Zeev Buium and the Canucks are stuck in a seven-game skid, but the bottom of the standings comes with a prize Vancouver can't ignore.
Vancouver is 2-7-1 heading into tonight's home game against Carolina. Only Los Angeles and Calgary have fewer points.
That's the bad news. The good news is that a season like this tends to come with pretty darn solid lottery odds.
The Canucks have scored just 13 goals over their last seven games, held to two in all but one.
Lose enough of those nights and the math starts working the other way. A bottom-three finish puts a top pick within reach.
That's the silver lining, and Vancouver should lean into it. Trading futures to chase a wild-card spot from this hole would be a bad idea.
Stankoven, Tkachuk and Kucherov show what Vancouver is missing
The road trip showed exactly what's lacking. Logan Stankoven had a hat trick in Carolina's 7-2 win, and Brady Tkachuk added a natural hat trick in Florida.
Nikita Kucherov scored twice in Tampa Bay on Saturday, and Jake Guentzel joined in.
Those are all players that the Vancouver Canucks just don't have right now. Maybe someday, and that's the hope.
That's what a high pick buys. The kind of game-breaker who takes over a night by himself.
The foundation is already forming on the blue line. Buium is 20, Tom Willander is 21, and defenseman Elias Pettersson has three goals.
Up front, Jonathan Lekkerimaki and Liam Ohgren are both 22, with a combined 11 points.
A rebuild season is like a winter garden. Nothing looks alive above the dirt, but that's when the roots go in.
The defensive troubles aren't going away overnight. Vancouver has allowed 45 goals, and Kevin Lankinen is sitting at .801.
Those numbers hurt now. They might look a lot better when the lottery balls drop.
Carolina, Detroit and Minnesota all come to Vancouver this week. Every result on this homestand moves the needle, and the front office has to decide which way it's rooting.
Should the Canucks embrace the losing for better draft lottery odds?
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